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The Boston Molasses Disaster of 1919

The Boston Molasses Disaster of 1919

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The Boston Molasses Disaster occurred on January 15, 1919, in the North End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. A large molasses storage tank burst, and a wave of molasses rushed through the streets at an estimated 35 mph (56 km/h), killing 21 and injuring 150. The event has entered local folklore, and for decades afterward, residents claimed…
Cats and Dogs Dressed as People (1910s)

Cats and Dogs Dressed as People (1910s)

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Harry Whittier Frees (1879–1953) was an American photographer who created novelty postcards and children’s books based on his photographs of live, posed animals. He dressed the animals and posed them in human situations with props, often with captions; these can be seen as progenitors of modern lolcats.
Historic photos of China from 1889-1891

Historic photos of China from 1889-1891

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In the 19th century, the great Chinese Diaspora began. Losses due to emigration were added to by conflicts and catastrophes such as the Northern Chinese Famine of 1876–79, in which between 9 and 13 million people died. In 1898, the Guangxu Emperor drafted a reform plan to establish a modern constitutional monarchy, but these plans were thwarted by the Empress…
Tod Browning’s Freaks (1932)

Tod Browning’s Freaks (1932)

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Freaks is a rarity, a horror film that horrifies rather than frightens. It was slated on its release in 1932, has been blamed for the downhill career trajectories thereafter of the key players, and was banned in many countries for more than thirty years. Yet in 1994 it was selected for the National Film Registry’s archives, and now enjoys both…
Shanghai postcards from 1930s

Shanghai postcards from 1930s

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For centuries a major administrative, shipping, and trading town, Shanghai grew in importance in the 19th century due to European recognition of its favorable port location and economic potential. The city was one of five opened to foreign trade following the British victory over China in the First Opium War while the subsequent 1842 Treaty of Nanking and 1844 Treaty…
Swedish life in the 1930s

Swedish life in the 1930s

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Einar Erici was a skilful amateur photographer. His main motifs were churches and church organs, according to his field of science. The photos were taken during the first half of the 20th century on his travels across Sweden. Most of them are from the provinces of Gotland and Uppland. However, main focus of the set will be on another and…
The Days of Prohibition

The Days of Prohibition

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Prohibition in the United States was a nationwide constitutional ban on the sale, production, importation, and transportation of alcoholic beverages that remained in place from 1920 to 1933. It was promoted by “dry” crusaders movement, led by rural Protestants and social Progressives in the Democratic and Republican parties, and was coordinated by the Anti-Saloon League, and the Woman’s Christian Temperance…
Broken Glass-Plate Portraits from Romania (1940s)

Broken Glass-Plate Portraits from Romania (1940s)

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Amazing collection of broken glass-plate portraits by Romanian photographer Costică Acsinte. Costică Acsinte was born 4th of July, 1897 in a small village called Perieți, Ialomița County, Costică Acsinte fought in WWI. Despite his formation as a pilot, he was a official war photographer till 15th of June, 1920. As soon as the war was over he opened a studio…
The Flatiron Building

The Flatiron Building

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The Flatiron Building, originally the Fuller Building, is located at 175 Fifth Avenue in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, and is considered to be a groundbreaking skyscraper. Upon completion in 1902, it was one of the tallest buildings in the city and one of only two skyscrapers north of 14th Street – the other being the Metropolitan Life…
The Edwardian era in the United Kingdom

The Edwardian era in the United Kingdom

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Queen Victoria died in 1901 and her son Edward VII became king, inaugurating the Edwardian Era, which was characterised by great and ostentatious displays of wealth in contrast to the sombre Victorian Era. With the advent of the 20th century, things such as motion pictures, automobiles, and aeroplanes were coming into use. The new century was characterised by a feeling…
Images from “Safety Last!” (1923)

Images from “Safety Last!” (1923)

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Safety Last! is a 1923 romantic comedy silent film starring Harold Lloyd. It includes one of the most famous images from the silent film era: Lloyd clutching the hands of a large clock as he dangles from the outside of a skyscraper above moving traffic. The film was highly successful and critically hailed, and it cemented Lloyd’s status as a major…
Grant Park in Chicago

Grant Park in Chicago

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The city officially designated the land as a park on April 29, 1844, naming it Lake Park. When the Illinois Central Railroad was built into Chicago in 1852, it was permitted to lay track along the lakefront on a causeway built offshore from the park. The resulting lagoon became stagnant, and was largely filled in 1871 with debris from the…
Coca-Cola Delivery Trucks

Coca-Cola Delivery Trucks

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Over the past 100-plus years, trucks have evolved as Coca-Cola delivery trucks attest. From the solid axles to right-hand drive to the bottles exposed to the elements, this truck looks radically different than today’s modern beverage delivery trucks, but still fulfills the same function–to deliver beverages to retail customers. via Coca-Cola Archives
Roy Repp and his Stunt Car

Roy Repp and his Stunt Car

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Roy Repp was an Australian stunt driver. One of his stunt cars was Maude the Motor Mule. For this car, he would pull a lever, and a heavy weight beneath the car moves forward or backward to shift the center of gravity and makes the car rear up on its hind wheels or front wheels.   via Library of Congress
Vintage photos of Moscow in the past (19th century)

Vintage photos of Moscow in the past (19th century)

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The city of Moscow gradually grew around the Moscow Kremlin, beginning in the 14th century. It was the capital of Great Russia, also known as the Grand Duchy of Moscow (or Muscovy), from 1340 to 1547 and then the Tsardom of Russia until 1712 (when the capital was moved to Saint Petersburg). It was the capital of the Russian Soviet…
Gangsters & Grifters

Gangsters & Grifters

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Created from the Chicago Tribune’s vast archives, Gangsters & Grifters is a collection of photographs featuring infamous criminals, small-time bandits, smirking crooks, pickpockets, hoodlums, and wise guys at shocking crime scenes. These vintage glass-plate and acetate negatives were taken in the early 1900s through the 1950s, and have been largely unseen for generations. That is because most have never been…
Warsaw in the late 19th Century

Warsaw in the late 19th Century

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Warsaw flourished in the late 19th century under Mayor Sokrates Starynkiewicz (1875–92), a Russian-born general appointed by Tsar Alexander III. Under Starynkiewicz Warsaw saw its first water and sewer systems designed and built by the English engineer William Lindley and his son, William Heerlein Lindley, as well as the expansion and modernization of horsecars, street lighting and gas works. Starynkiewicz…